(please note: updates may be made to the schedule, check here for the latest version)

Young Women from All 50 States Hope to Show Country“What Unity Sounds Like” July 24-28 in Philadelphia

(Philadelphia, PA, updated July 22, 2016 3:00 pm EDT) There’s a convention coming to town, but it’s not the one you’re thinking of … young women Singer Delegates from all over the country will be coming to Philadelphia for the “Let Freedom SING!” Girlchoir National Convention. With representatives from every state in the Union, this unique ensemble of 100 includes diverse perspectives and backgrounds.

The five inspirational and jammed-pack days of music and memory making is being hosted by the Pennsylvania Girlchoir, but Thursday evening has been left wide open intentionally in hopes that the all-American assembly will be invited to sing the National Anthem on nomination night at the Democratic National Convention at the Wells Fargo Center. The goal would be an effort to show the entire country “what unity sounds like.” The Girlchoir would gladly accept an invitation to appear at the event – not with a partisan mission, but as an opportunity to showcase on the national stage the power of choral music in the lives of young women, as well as its power to unite us as Americans.

The Girlchoir Convention’s Opening Session will take place on Sunday, July 24 at 6:30 pm in the “Grey Towers” Castle at Arcadia University in Glenside, Pennsylvania. From Monday through Thursday, choral “caucuses” and rehearsals will take place in Arcadia’s Great Hall from 9:30 am to noon, with opportunities for the Singer Delegates to sing under a variety of notable conductors and composers, many of whom will be women. The afternoons will be filled with a mixture of “pop up” performances and “sight SINGing” at historic locations throughout Philadelphia.

Performance highlights include: two DNC events, a Tuesday evening appearance at the ARTSSPEAK@DNC event at the Philadelphia Museum of Art featuring Ben Vereen and Ben Folds; and a Wednesday performance at the Heritage Festival Block Party in South Philadelphia; and a Thursday ecumenical service titled “What Unity Sounds Like.” Thursday’s event will include Ela Weissberger, a special guest Singer Delegate from New York who is a Holocaust survivor.

“Singing with others literally helped save my life in the camp,” recalls Weissberger. “Singing with others gives us strength.”

The idea for the “Let Freedom SING!” Girlchoir National Convention was the brainchild of Steven Fisher, Artistic Director of the Pennsylvania Girlchoir and its brother-choir, Keystone State Boychoir. “As a founder of an organization that aims to transform the lives of young people through making music together,” says Fisher, “I’m keenly aware of the how choral music helps children to develop into strong, confident adults who are at the ready to – literally and figuratively – let their voices be heard in the world.”

The “Let Freedom SING!” Girlchoir National Convention (LFS! GNC) is a six-day choral festival that brings together young women “Singer Delegates” from each of the 50 states in the Union to celebrate the beauty, recognize the power, and affirm the importance of Girlchoirs. The GNC will be held Sunday, July 24-Friday, July 29, 2016 in Philadelphia, and is hosted by Pennsylvania Girlchoir.

They want to sing the National Anthem at the Wells Fargo Center on the night that Hillary Clinton gives her historic nomination-acceptance speech next week, but first comes the tough task of being selected over the likes of Beyonce, Katy Perry and a local boy whose voice wowed Pope Francis.

Next week, 100 choral singers from across the country will bring their talents to the “Let Freedom Sing!” Girlchoir National Convention “in an effort to raise a bipartisan voice through song.”

A pair of “singer delegates” were selected from each state. Mostly high-school girls (though a 9-year-old and 86-year-old Holocaust survivor will be among them), they will arrive in town starting Sunday to meet for the first time ever. Then, they’ll prepare for the “Let Freedom SING!” concert next Wednesday at Arcadia University.

Lawton, Oklahoma Constitution reporter K. W. Hillis talked with singer delegate Emma Erway, one of the two Oklahoma singer delegates coming to Philadelphia for “Let Freedom SING!” Girlchoir National Convention starting July 24. Hillis asked Erway what was the most exciting part:

“The music, we have some beautiful pieces. I am an atmosphere person and we are going to be singing in the original old building at Arcadia … the Castle. I’m really excited to sing beautiful pieces in a beautiful place. I just love that,” said Erway, a 17-year-old, home-schooled, high-school senior. “Also being able to work with the people they selected to teach us and conduct us. They have selected the best of the best.”

Today is the last practice soon-to-be Kenai Central High School freshmen Candice Bowers and Nya Dukowitz have to perfect their pitch before heading to the Let Freedom Sing Girlchoir National Convention this weekend in Pennsylvania.

The students will represent the Kenai Peninsula and all of Alaska along with 98 other female high school choristers, two tapped from each of the 50 U.S. states.

Thank you!

Thank you to the 100 voices of the “Let Freedom SING!” Girlchoir, the conductors, chaperones, families and all who made the Girlchoir National Convention a success. Explore the site for media reports, photos and more from LFS! GNC.